sunshine canyon 3 | Sunshine Canyon Landfill - Community Advisory Committee

https://topochange.cr.usgs.gov/landfills.php

Topographic change due to landfill operations has been observed based on some of the features delineated by the elevation differencing and thresholding process. The resulting altered landforms from landfills differ from other anthropogenic activities in that much of the deposited material is not rock and soil that had been previously excavated but man-made material that has been transported to the deposition site.

The figure below shows the Sunshine Canyon landfill in Sylmar, California, an example of topographic change due to landfill operations. The operation and expansion of this landfill continues to be a controversial topic in the local area. The close proximity of the landfill site to a major transportation artery is a reminder that visual impacts of human geomorphic activities can be significant.

The state will monitor Sunshine Canyon until a local body is set up.

Adding another wrinkle to a decades-old controversy over a giant dump in the north San Fernando Valley, the state has approved a request by the operator of Sunshine Canyon Landfill to step in and oversee enforcement of waste laws at the facility until a city-county joint agency is approved.

Sunshine Canyon is actually two landfills roughly a quarter of a mile apart, which puts them in different jurisdictions: one in the city of Los Angeles, the other in unincorporated county territory.

For The Record
Sunshine Canyon: An article in the June 30 California section about the Sunshine Canyon Landfill said the dump sits atop an underground reservoir that holds water for 19 million people. The San Fernando Groundwater Basin is one mile south of the dump, and only non-potable water lies under the dump. Also, the article stated that Greg Loughnane, a spokesman for Browning-Ferris Industries, said company officials wanted to combine the two dumps at the site into one because a single dump would be less expensive to operate. In fact, Loughnane said the sole reason for seeking to merge the two was concern they would run out of room for garbage.

https://www.thefreelibrary.com/CLOSING+YEAR+IFFY+FOR+LANDFILL.-a0138291833

Sunshine Canyon Landfill could take in up to 57 million tons more trash than officials have predicted, potentially extending the life span of the Granada Hills dump far past the 26 years that are expected, according to a consultant hired by dump opponents.

At the request of attorneys hired by local activists, Wisconsin-based landfill engineer J.W. Spear analyzed trash decomposition and compression to show that Browning Ferris Industries underestimated the dump’s 90-million ton capacity and 26-year life span. Longtime Granada Hills activists in the North Valley Coalition now have the backing of national environmental giants, the Sierra Club and Natural Resources Defense Council, plus the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, which represents BFI’s workers, in their fight over Sunshine Canyon.

Spear’s report was submitted to Los Angeles County officials this week. The county’s Regional Planning Commission is considering a new land-use permit for Sunshine Canyon Landfill today.

The newly formed coalition of residents, environmental groups and organized labor is pushing for a guarantee that the landfill will close when it reaches 90 million tons or after 26 years – as officials have always estimated. Currently, the permit allows BFI to keep adding trash until the dump is full – even years longer than anticipated.

“A closure date would be advantageous and give an end point to the agony that surrounding communities have suffered,” said Jan Chatten-Brown, an attorney representing Protect Our Water and Environmental Resources, or POWER.

The Teamsters local, whose contract with BFI expires in 2007, decided to join to coalition because its members are residents of the community, said spokeswoman Leigh Strope.

“They are concerned about the impact this landfill is having on the health and safety of their families and their children.”

In Sun Valley, the Teamsters have rallied to support BFI competitor, Waste Management, which has proposed to expand Bradley Landfill and build a transfer station.

BFI District Manager Greg Loughnane said the POWER coalition’s request is misguided. The closure date is an estimate. The landfill’s permit regulates the footprint of the dump, not its capacity or life span.

“Market conditions will dictate when the landfill will close,” he said.

Carlos Ruiz, with Los Angeles County Department of Public Works’ Environmental Programs, said his group’s previous analysis conflicts with Spear’s report. County analysts found Sunshine Canyon Landfill can take about 92 million tons and last an extra year or two at the most.

BFI is seeking a new land-use permit to combine two separate dumps – one in county jurisdiction and one in city jurisdiction – into one massive landfill. The joint landfill could take in up to 12,100 tons of trash per day, generating an estimated 2,500 truck trips a day.

https://www.enn.com/top_stories/article/16728

SANTA MONICA, California — The Sunshine Canyon landfill in the San Fernando Valley could expose residents in the region to more trash for a far longer period than they are being told, according to Protect Our Water and Environmental Resources (POWER), a coalition of environmental and labor groups dedicated to protecting residents of Southern California from the dangers of landfills. The community surrounding Sunshine Canyon should not be forced to bear the burdens of the landfill for longer than governmental reports previously represented.

A permit proposal for Sunshine Canyon, submitted by BFI/Allied Waste, will be considered at a hearing Thursday at the Los Angeles County Regional Planning Commission. Area residents should know that previous environmental documents stating that the facility has the capacity to receive 90 million tons and would close after about 26 years are unreliable. This is because there is no provision guaranteeing that the landfill will close when it receives 90 million tons or after 26 years. POWER is requesting that the Commission require a tonnage limit or closure date.

Sunshine Canyon could actually take in much more waste than 90 million tons, according to a new study prepared for the coalition by landfill engineer J.W. Spear, who has more than 25 years of experience in the waste management industry. The study found that 24 million to 57 million more tons of waste could go into the landfill, on top of the 90 million that has been projected.

“Mr. Spear’s credentials are impressive and the North Valley Coalition believes his conclusions support our contention that this landfill will be much larger than analyzed in the environmental documentation. Its impacts on the community, indeed the city and county as a whole, have not been adequately addressed,” said Wayde Hunter, President of the North Valley Coalition, which represents residents in the area of the landfill.

Because the tonnage determines the closure date of the landfill, this could mean that the landfill would operate far longer than the 26 years now estimated. There is no requirement that will force the landfill to close when 90 million tons have been deposited or when 26 years have elapsed.

“The North San Fernando Valley continues to suffer from the negative effects of the Sunshine Canyon Landfill. The time has come to put an end to this environmentally polluting practice and start recovering our waste for beneficial use as described in my RENEW LA plan,” said Los Angeles City Councilmember Greig Smith.

The POWER coalition includes the North Valley Coalition, Sierra Club, Natural Resources Defense Council, Environmental Law Foundation, and the International Brotherhood of Teamsters.

https://waste360.com/news/los-angeles

The Los Angeles City Council has agreed to pay for a study on urban landfills using funds from a trust fund created a decade ago by the operators of Sunshine Canyon landfill. The $100,000 to be used is the last of the money remaining in the $1 million fund created by Browning Ferris Industries, the landfill’s operator.

The study will look at ways the city can deal with landfills and the city’s trash over the next 20 years. Los Angeles Mayor James Hahn has promised to stop using Sunshine Canyon for residential trash disposal by 2006 and will fight the use of urban landfills. There is a June 2005 deadline for the city to decide the fate of its contract with Sunshine Canyon.

https://articles.latimes.com/1991-09-28/local/me-2909_1_sunshine-canyon-landfill

A judge Friday temporarily halted the beginning of construction on the expansion of Sunshine Canyon Landfill into 200 acres of Los Angeles County-controlled land above Granada Hills.

Construction was set to start Monday–two weeks before a lawsuit opposing the dump expansion is scheduled to be heard.

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Ronald M. Sohigian issued a temporary restraining order halting the project at the request of the city of Los Angeles, which is suing Los Angeles County and Browning-Ferris Industries, the landfill’s owner.

[youtube width=”700″ height=”376″]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=66DaOJpOvAg[/youtube]

https://articles.latimes.com/1995-12-09/news/mn-12118_1_sunshine-canyon-landfill

The city of Los Angeles will receive more than $500,000 for environmental and community programs and pay “competitive” trash disposal rates under an agreement finalized Friday to reopen the controversial Sunshine Canyon Landfill above Granada Hills.

The agreement also calls on the owner of the dump, Browning-Ferris Industries Inc., to drop a $400-million lawsuit against the city, according to sources and city reports. Continue reading →

Sunshine Canyon Landfill – Community Advisory Committee

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Tag Archives: sunshine canyon

August 25, 2008 – Significant Topographic Changes in the United States (USGS)

June 30, 2008 – Valley landfill oversight dispute comes to a head (Los Angeles Times)

The state will monitor Sunshine Canyon until a local body is set up.

November 3, 2005 – CLOSING YEAR IFFY FOR LANDFILL (Daily News)

November 4, 2005 – Sunshine Canyon Landfill Needs a Sunset, Says POWER (ENN)

November 4, 2004 – Los Angeles to Study Urban Landfills (Waste360)

September 28, 1991 – Judge Postpones Start of Construction to Expand Sunshine Canyon Dump (L.A. Times)

Video from Sunshine Canyon Landfill

December 09, 1995 – City, Operator Strike Deal to Reopen Sunshine Dump : Landfills: Agreement could affect closure of Lopez Canyon. Granada Hills neighbors threaten to sue. (L.A. Times)